Washington, D.C.—Preparing a batch of sample envelopes to send to my sister-in-law Nikelle, who is opening her floral design shop Wylde in Raleigh, NC. She graciously offered to keep a sample book of my calligraphy envelopes in her shop. Can't wait to show her the final set and to visit her shop.

Washington, D.C. — It's been a while, so I'll just jump right in and share some inspiration. I had the fortune to catch the Metropolitan Museum of Art's retrospective exhibition of the French portraitist, Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun, before it closed. I took a women artists course in college, and along with Artemisia Gentileschi and Rachel Ruysch, Vigée Le Brun stood out as favorites. I always loved the subtle and muted tones of her color palette and the pleasing and empathetic approach she had to depicting her subjects.

Upon seeing the paintings first hand, I was struck by her use of bolder colors like vermillion, rust reds, and carmine as accents, something I did not remember from my college days. Overall, the color of her paintings was gorgeous and inspiring. It left such an impression on me that I unknowingly bought envelopes at the paper store in her palette.

The exhibition catalogue and two sets of envelopes.

Another postcard from the show of Vigée Le Brun's daughter posing as a bather. This birthday card to my sister is inspired by the colors of the painting.

Sharing this video of a Japanese artisan at work all over the social media sphere. I found his artistry and craft deeply affecting, and not to mention the film is beautifully well made. It is the work we do with our hands that make us who we are.

Celles et Ceux des Cimes et Cieux is an exquisite film by French animation student Gwenn Germain for his final art project. Created as an homage to Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki, the short animation expertly captures the lyrical tone and sensibility of what makes a Miyazaki a Miyazaki. (Even one of the characters bears a striking resemblance to the man himself.)

Washington, D.C. — It's funny how often you forget to watch music videos, even though they enhance your appreciation of a song. I listen to the Swedish band Little Dragon a lot on Spotify while I work, but I never think to watch their videos. Recently, I recommended the band to someone and in looking up their song Twice, I stumbled upon this amazing video. As a child, I always loved shadow puppets and silhouettes, so to see this haunting song transformed into a lyrical piece of puppet theatre was wonderful. It's such a beautiful and melancholic film full of subtle details.

A recent pen pal letter with a silhouette design on the envelope.

I really like Kara Walker's silhouette art, so I created this envelope using a similar technique. The illustration was drawn and filled in with black sumi ink, so there was a nice sheen on the black surfaces of the envelope when held up to the light. It's a different sort of shadow puppet play depicting a childhood scene of the lazy days of summer.

Individually wrapped cookies from Japan. Beautiful color combination that I'll have to try in a letter and envelope.

A Beautiful Hand-Embroidered Pillow

Hibiki proudly showing me her mother's fine needle work.

Hand-Embroidered Art

This stunning hand-stitched piece was made for Children's Day (Kodomo no Hi) by Hibiki's grandmother.

またね！

Until next time...

ありがとうございました。

A letter of thanks to the Satos.

Rye Brook, NY — A few highlights from my fun visit to the Sato house, along with my sister Maria and her boyfriend Charles. Keichi, Mami, Hibiki, and Kaede are a wonderfully creative family. I definitely felt inspired by all that I saw and did. Looking forward to our next play date.

New York, NY — Over the weekend, I made sure to set aside time to see the Egon Schiele: Portraits exhibition at the Neue Galerie before it closed. Discovering Schiele's work was one of the reasons I became an art history major in college. What struck me most back then, and again in viewing the exhibition, was the simplicity of lines and flatness of form in his drawings. Being able to see and appreciate Schiele's work in person was a beautiful experience. I was reminded how much his work has strongly influenced my own style as an illustrator.

UPDATE: The Neue Galerie just announced that the exhibition has been extended through April 20, 2015. Definitely check the exhibition out if you are able.